Half of Japs Would Return to This Area

Of 1,900 Japanese-American families interviewed by War Relocation Authority officials at the Minidoka relocation center near Hunt, Idaho, approximately 900 have expressed a desire to return to homes in the Seattle area, John Bigelow, W.R.A. reports officer, said yesterday.

Only three of the families said they wished to return as soon as it was possible legally, Bigelow said. The remainder indicated they would delay their return until suitable preparations had been made.

Majority Rented Land.

It was found, Bigelow said, the average family was made up of three members. About 600 families remain to be interviewed. If the same proportion obtains, a total of about 3,600 Japanese-Americans will have announced their expectation of returning to this area.

The 1,300 other families, about 90 per cent of whom are from the Seattle area, have asked only for resettlement in an area which offers the most attractive possibilities for them.

It was pointed out that only a minority of the Japanese-Americans own land in this vicinity, and that the majority previously leased or rented the land they occupied.

"Not more than 10 per cent of the returning Japanese-Americans may be expected within the next six months," Bigelow said.

No Stampede Expected.

"There seems to be no doubt that it is going to take time for most of them to make plans and get things lined up for their return. There certainly isn't going to be any stampeded as a result of revocation of the exclusion order."

Many of the families interviewed, according to Bigelow, said they did not plan to return immediately because sons were in the service, and it would be impossible to resume their normal farming pursuits until the youths were again in civilian life.

Population at the Minidoka center now stands at approximately 7,400 persons, Bigelow said.